Kevin Costner wows Cleveland crowd

View full sizeKevin Costner at Brother's Lounge in Cleveland.John Kuntz, The Plain Dealer

The Brothers Lounge was packed last Friday and the air was thick with anticipation. Movie star and rock star Kevin Costner and his band Modern West were about to take the stage. People were excited.

There is a long tradition of movie stars who dabble in rock 'n' roll as an alternate form of creative self-expression.

John Belushi and Dan Aykroyd famously transformed themselves into the Blues Brothers. Bruce Willis played harmonica under the guise of someone named Bruno. Keanu Reeves had an alt-country outfit called Dogstar. Johnny Depp has played in several rock bands, his own and others.

Word from the Costner camp had it that he was coming right from the set of his movie "Draft Day" to Brothers. I knew it wouldn't be too long before we saw him in the spotlight because "Draft Day" director Ivan Reitman was cordoned off in the corner of the bar in a makeshift VIP section. Not much happens on a movie set when the director isn't there. Actress Jennifer Garner (Mrs. Ben Affleck) joined him before the show.

Costner and company began with "Red River," a rollicking tune that livened up the already excited crowd. The band sounded good. Costner's daughter Lily joined him onstage playing guitar and singing on a few numbers. This would not be the worst night in country-rock history. We had that going for us.

Even more enjoyable than the music were Costner's ease and affability onstage. This is a guy comfortable in his own skin, and he was gracious and endearing between songs, telling stories. He began by thanking the crowd for coming and the city for making the cast and crew of "Draft Day" feel so at home.

Then he talked about the Indians:

"I've watched my share of baseball," he began. "And I've made my share of baseball movies. From what I see of this Cleveland team, I think they have a real good chance to win the division."

You can imagine how this went over with the audience.

Before playing a song about pursuing one's dream, he told a story about his dad's less-than-excited response when he heard his son was pursuing a career in acting. After he had some success as an actor, he told his dad he was going to become a director. His dad seemed to feel young Kevin was pushing his luck.

And we all know how things turned out for him with a little picture called "Dances With Wolves." So that got a big laugh.

He also mentioned he noticed that people in Cleveland are really fond of their beer. He said he wasn't a drinker and didn't know if he could ever fit in here. (He was true to his word; at the after-party he nursed a single can of Coke.)

But he wasn't down on all aspects of hard-drinking Cleveland.

"You have not lived," he told the crowd. "Until you've seen a girl from Cleveland suck down an ice-cold beer. It's really something to see."

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